Magpie Pictures recently provided the services of Lois Randall as the Producer of Seachange – a project that reimagines the hugely popular & iconic Australian TV series, first televised in 1998. By the second and third series, it was the top rated television drama in Australia. The show embodied the emergent cultural zeitgeist, of a dream for a “treechange/seachange” escape from the rat race of city life.
The 2019 reboot, comprised of eight x 1 hour episodes, was an ITV Studios and Everycloud Productions drama, created for the Nine Network, with other key investment from Screen Australia and Create NSW, and is distributed internationally by ITV Studios Global Entertainment.
After 20 years, Sigrid Thornton reprised her starring role as Laura Gibson, to work with the original series creator & Head Writer Deb Cox – who with Every Cloud’s Fiona Eagger are Executive Producers with Sigrid Thornton; alongside ITV Studio’s David Mott; and Nine’s Andy Ryan and Jo Rooney. Magpie Pictures’ Lois Randall was series Producer, with Wayne Blair as set up director.
Other Australian acting luminaries from the original series cast also returned – with John Howard again playing Bob Jelly, now a disgraced developer who’s just out of prison. Kerry Armstrong revisits her role as Bob's loyal wife Heather; while Kevin Harrington is again the earnest and hapless Kevin Findlay. Their fellow cast members now include Brooke Satchwell (Wonderland, Packed to the Rafters), Dan Wyllie (Romper Stomper, No Activity, Gallipoli, Tangle), Darren McMullen (House Husbands, The Voice Australia), Katrina Milosevic (Wentworth, Winners & Losers, Offspring), Ella Newton (Playing for Keeps, Neighbours, Newton’s Law), Kate Lister (Bad Mothers, Neighbours) and Alex Tarrant (800 Words, Shortland Street).
Lois Randall from Magpie Pictures says:
“I was proud to work with Everycloud Productions, Deb Cox, Fiona Eagger, ITV Studio’s David Mott, and Sigrid Thornton, who are the Executive Producers on the show, along with the Nine Network’s Andy Ryan & Jo Rooney. It was a pleasure to work with the talented creative team that brought Seachange back to our TV screens for Australian viewers. The professionalism, hard work, & talent of this fabulous creative team contributed to the huge success of the series once Seachange premiered as 2019’s highest rating drama on Australian television”.
(From L-R) Lois Randall, Fiona Eagger, & Deb Cox
The opening episode of the series dominated its timeslot, to give the Nine Network the highest number of viewers of any show in the five major metropolitan markets of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. It was the number one show for the entire night in Melbourne, and the dominant timeslot winner across the country with people aged 25-54. At its peak, the national audience reached a whopping 1.599 million (Metro: 1.142 million / Regional: 457,000), with the average national audience hitting 1.105 million.